NCJ Number
200193
Journal
Journal of Youth and Adolescence Volume: 32 Issue: 4 Dated: August 2003 Pages: 259-266
Date Published
August 2003
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This study examined the association between perceived economic stress (current economic hardship and future economic worry) and adolescent adjustment for 229 Chinese juveniles, using juveniles' and parents' reports of perceived economic stress.
Abstract
The data for this study were obtained from the Time 1 data of a longitudinal study that was designed to determine any relationship between psychosocial factors (including perceived economic stress) and adjustment of adolescents with economic disadvantage in Hong Kong; there were two waves of data collection. The participants were recruited from families who were receiving Comprehensive Social Security Assistance or full Textbook Allowance from the government. In Hong Kong, persons receiving this kind of financial aid from the government can be regarded as families with financial difficulty. An adolescent in each family was required to complete an Adolescent Questionnaire, which contained measures of perceived economic stress, psychological well-being, and problem behavior. The parents completed a Parent Questionnaire that contained measures of perceived economic stress and psychological well-being. The findings show that parents manifested higher levels of perceived current economic hardship and worry about future economic status than did their children, and mothers worried more about their children's economic future than did the fathers. Higher levels of economic stress based on ratings obtained from various sources were generally related to lower levels of existential well-being, life satisfaction, self-esteem, and mastery, as well as higher levels of general psychiatric morbidity and substance abuse in adolescents. Compared with current economic stress perceived by adolescents, adolescents' worry about future economic conditions was more strongly related to the psychological well-being of Chinese adolescents with economic disadvantage. 4 tables and 41 references